Why you Should Embrace the Chaos

Why you Should Embrace the Chaos

Is your life chaotic?

Chaotic work schedules, crazy relationships, messy houses, wild kids (or in my case, dogs)… it all adds up to one hectic and chaotic life.

Lately I’ve been thinking, “What if rather than feeling defeated by the chaos, I embrace it?”

Embracing the Chaos

Chaos is a normal part of life. The Second Law of Thermodynamics tells us about this thing called entropy–the tendency for the world to gravitate towards a state of disorder. The Bible tells us this degenerative cycle is a result of evil entering into our existence.

From the very beginning of the Bible, we see Yahweh Himself bringing order to the chaos that existed before His creation. Not familiar with this part of the story? Let me fill you in.

The Origin of Chaos

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:1-2 ESV).

Many of us have grown up imagining that these two verses describe a vast expanse of nothingness, a blank slate for God’s creation. But, let’s take a closer look.

The original Hebrew for the phrase “formless and void” is “tohu bohu,” which is more closely translated as “to lie in waste, desolation, confusion, emptiness, chaos, indistinguishable ruin.” This doesn’t sound like a blank slate; it sounds more like the aftermath of a war.

A number of theologians suspect that Lucifer’s rebellion and the induction of the cosmic war took place sometime before the creation account in Genesis, which is why we see God speaking light into darkness and goodness amidst chaos and evil.

We are Commissioned to Bring Order to Chaos.

Regardless of whether you believe the book of Genesis is literal truth or poetic allegory, there are tremendous implications to be taken from this story.

God created us in His image. He appointed us to subdue the earth. In essence, He commissioned us with this command, “Bring order to chaos in the same way you have seen Me do. Where there is evil, speak goodness. Where there is darkness, create light. Where there is desert wastelands, bring forth life from the dust.”

We can do this in every area of our lives if we simply change our perspective. We can find fulfillment in the most menial of tasks by imaging God and bringing forth the fullness of His presence through our words and actions.

As Tim Keller once said, “When a mother brushes the tangles from her daughter’s hair, she is creating order out of chaos.”

We were made for this. If the Spirit of Yahweh lives inside us, then we have authority over the chaos of our lives. If we are Christ-followers, we must not allow ourselves to be defeated by the hectic pieces of our lives, but rather, with every word, every breath, every action, we must use love to rule over and subdue the chaos.